Water table has risen in Gujiliamparai, Vedasandur blocks Water-holding structures like farm ponds, minor check dams and percolation ponds constructed in drought-prone areas have started reaping results in Dindigul district, thanks to moderate to heavy showers in mid-August. Farmers in Gujiliamparai and Vedasandur blocks, which have several water-holding structures, now appeal to the government to create more structures in other areas, especially outside watershed area. District Watershed Development Agency (DWDA), with active community participation, created rainwater harvesting structures in many villages in these blocks. Rainwater stored in these structures raised groundwater table considerably. Within a radius of 200 metres, water table rose by 10 feet in 27 wells and by 40 feet in 121 borewells in these blocks, said Jayanthi, Watershed Development member in Vedasandur. S. Gopal of Sengaliyur and Ravi of Silamba Goundanurpalayam too said new ponds dug in their villages were full and groundwater level rose in farm wells. Vangiliappan of Pallathuvayal in Viruthalaipatti watershed in Vedasandur block said his well was dry for more than four years. Now, it had three metres of water due to the storage in new percolation pond dug just 100 metres from his well. “Now I have planned a new crop,” he said. Emulating this model in other areas is need of the hour because several parts of the district have witnessed insufficient rain in the past four years, and over 70 per cent of wells and borewells are completely dry. Large tracts of cultivable lands have been kept idle. Cattle and people have been suffering from shortage of drinking water in many villages, Water Shed members said. “All the 13 blocks in the district are situated on the slope. On an average, a 150-metre slope spreads over many agricultural areas. Naturally, the run-off is quite rampant. The district needs natural resource management to conserve soil and moisture,” said N. Jayaraj, Project Manager, DWDA.